Lazarus and the Rich Man - Bible Story

The Bible Story of Lazarus and the Rich Man

Lazarus and the rich man is a well-known parable of Jesus found in the Gospel of Luke. Told in chapter 16 of Luke, Jesus shares the story of a notably wealthy man, also known as a dive, who lived a life of extravagant luxury. Laying outside the entrance of this rich man’s house, though, was an exceptionally unfortunate man called Lazarus who only hoped “to eat what fell from the rich man’s table."   The rich man was very unsympathetic to the dilemma of Lazarus, offering him no love, help, or compassion. In time, they both met their mortal ends and passed on to the afterlife.

Lazarus was welcomed into heaven, while the rich man was condemned to hell. Pleading to “Father Abraham” in heaven, the rich man asked that Lazarus come down from heaven to cool his tongue with a drop of water to reduce his “agony in this fire.” The rich man additionally requested Abraham to send Lazarus back to earth as a warning to his brothers to atone for their sins, however, both requests were refused. Abraham told the rich man that if his brothers did not believe in Scripture, neither would they believe Lazarus, even if he came directly from heaven. This Bible story is a great and powerful reminder that we will pay for our sins on earth when we finally decease, therefore we should love and care for our fellow mankind.

Moral of Lazarus and the Rich Man Parable

The rich man incorrectly saw his worldly wealth as proof of God’s love and blessing. Also, he believed the impoverished, like Lazarus, were cursed by God. However, as the apostle James advised, “You have lived on earth in luxury and self-indulgence. You have fattened yourselves in the day of slaughter” (James 5:5). Not only do fortunes not get one into heaven, but they have the potential to separate a person from God like few other things. "but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful." (Mark 4:19). It is surely not impossible for the wealthy to enter heaven (numerous Godly men of the Bible were prosperous), but Scripture is plain that it is very troublesome (Luke 18:24-25).

Faithful disciples of Christ will not ignore the suffering of the poor like the rich man in this parable did. Jesus told us that when we show mercy to the poor and help our neighbors in need, we are actually ministering to the Lord Himself. "Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me."(Matthew 25:40). Christians are known by the righteous fruit they yield, not the worldly acquiring of wealth. If we are rich, we are to use that wealth for the glory of God and the love of our neighbor.

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